The force was with us.

Last weekend Brian and Caidyn did their first ever RunDisney races! Brian completed the Dark Side Challenge, a 10k on Saturday morning and a Half Marathon on Sunday morning and Caidyn completed one of the Kids Races - a 100m dash!

I have to preface this with a quick "Caidyn says" story.

Thursday evening she got out of bed 3-4 times after we had said goodnight. We were trying to pack, finish our taxes, and then go to bed ourselves. Finally I said to her, "If you get out of bed one more time we won't go see Mickey while we are at Disney". She responded, with a look of sincerity, "Mama, lock the door please". I could barely contain my laughter until I was out of her room. She means business when it comes to Mickey!

Our weekend started like any weekend with a 2 year old who is potty training and is about to drive four hours starts... with stories about the potty. Brian had to pick up his packet before 7pm, and since I don't get out of work until 4 we knew that wouldn't work. He rode up with a friend who was also running the race, so Caidyn and I were on our own for getting there. I picked her up from school, put on a pull up, made sure she went potty there, and got her started on some shows on her kindle.

About an hour into our drive she tells me she has to go potty and UNBUCKLES THE TOP BUCKLE OF HER CAR SEAT. Of course, I'm on the highway, and she can't figure out how to rebuckle it. The next exit we quickly get off... to find out the ONLY thing at this exit is a gun range. She asks to "poo poo in the grass like a birdy, Mama?" and that beats walking into a random sketchy gun range during Friday happy hour... so we pull over. Of course, nothing happens. She "only had to fart"... so we buckle her in, go over the importance of never unbuckling ourselves, and continue. About 20 minutes later we are in AWFUL traffic and she starts saying/whining she has to go. This happens at home sometimes and usually the second time she actually goes. So we pull off at the next exit - with a Publix this time, and spend 15 minutes on their potty without so much as a tinkle. We also get a lot of food because pregnant. We get back in the car, luckily traffic has cleared, and we are now more than an hour behind schedule (good thing we had planned on a sandwiches by the pool dinner... and now I had said sandwiches with me!). Of course, another 20 minutes goes by and she asks to go again "really bad" this time. I really don't want to chance a poop in her pull up... so we pull off at a rest stop. And she FINALLY goes. All becomes well in the world. And we make it the rest of the way to Disney at about 9pm. We enjoy our sandwhiches and walk around the hotel but no pool tonight.

The next morning at zero dark thirty Brian runs his race!

He is literally done and back in the hotel room by 7:30am, when Caidyn and I were just waking up :) 

We cuddle and relax until about 10:00 when we are STARVING and venture out for some breakfast and to get Caidyn to her big race! 

Shirts from Glitter Ever After. Daddy and Caidyn had to match :)

The RunDisney kids races were adorable. They had bibs for the kids, actual bananas and water and medals when they finished. It was well organized and Caidyn had a blast!

She actually ran the whole thing by herself, got her medal, and picked up a few bananas before even looking up to see where her parents were. It was ADORABLE!

They had other activities set up and our little athlete LOVED the obstacle course! We actually had to peel her away after she did it twice because we needed lunch pronto. 

She had a blast and was sure to tell everyone for the rest of the day about her race! 

Little Ham <3

We headed off to Magic Kingdom for the rest of the afternoon! We had fun with a few fast passes - we rode the Little Mermaid ride! Which of course broke down as we were in there (it never fails, no matter what theme park, one of the rides always breaks down - usually temporarily - while we are on it). Time for a quick blurry selfie! 

Our second fast pass was for the Jungle Cruise. Brian had no interest in going but I had never been on it before so on we went. Brian was saying how boring it was, etc. etc. But we ended up having the BEST boat operator ever and the entire time he just spoke in puns. Brian and I were laughing so hard! He said it was by far the best experience - it was so great we even stopped a supervisor after the ride to commend the driver! 

On our way to get the ever important Dole Whips we saw the Aladdin ride only had a 10 minute wait. We went on that and had a lot of fun!

I then waited for our Dole Whips while Brian and Caidyn rode Aladdin again! We enjoyed our snack and then went to meet Rapunzel and Cinderella! 

It's so interesting to me when we meet the princesses. They always come in two's, and I feel like the one people are less interested in meeting (by people I mean Caidyn) is always the more interactive and fun one. It was the same thing when we met Anna and Elsa. Caidyn was SO excited to meet Elsa and Cinderella - and Anna and Rapunzel were just the BEST characters! They asked questions, said so many in character things, and were just much better to interact with than the other characters. 

After this we started to head out so we could go get dinner and Brian could rest his feet. Of course I wanted one last family picture on Main Street before Ellie was born... and Caidyn had fallen asleep in the stroller. So we got one of just Brian and I - a rarity!

We had a relaxing evening - dinner at Carrabba's (delicious, I don't know why we never go there...) and then Brian took a mineral salts bath and went to sleep while Caidyn and I went for a swim - well Caidyn swam and I stood watch. 

Brian was up and out of the room for his half by 3am and Caidyn and I were out the door by 6:30 to go cheer him on! We got to see him run by at mile 12 and then met up at the finish line! He did SO amazing and we are so proud! 

We went back to the hotel for breakfast and for Brian to get a shower in (and us to pack up) and Caidyn did us the biggest favor and really wanted to go swimming. We gave her the choice after she asked to go swimming a few times of pool or going to see Mickey, and she chose the pool. Repeatedly. We were in. We both got to rest our feet and backs and just have a much more relaxed version of our day. It was the perfect end to our weekend and made for a very relaxing drive home! 

26, 27, 28, 29 - Third Trimester WE HAVE ARRIVED!

Week 26: We had a nice week and a wonderful weekend! Easter was this weekend and we had a nice time hosting family and spoiling our little girl on her last holiday as an only child!


Week 27: A semi painful week as I spent every day in the Star Lab for work + did a long event on Thursday evening for work. My sciatica was acting up a lot BUT everything got done!


Week 28: A busy week as I was prepping for state testing at work and then we had Angela's wedding festivities all weekend! I'm sure I looked ridiculous super pregnant at Hunkomania but the eye candy was enjoyable ;)


Week 29:
This was the first day of week 29. I was all dolled up for officiating Angela and Ray's wedding! I had a doctor's appointment the next day (Monday) and Eleanor and I were measuring right on track! The doctor even said she is already positioned head down - although she did remind me that she might still move, of course. We also had a surprise baby shower thrown for us that same evening at Caidyn's school! Eleanor will go there in the fall when I return to work and their excitement about their future classmate just made our days!


How far along: 7 1/2 months now! 
Total weight gain: 25 lbs. Ugh. 
Maternity Clothes: For the most part. I've splurged on a few last minute pieces (low rise shorts) that I'll feel comfortable wearing this summer as I'm shrinking. 
Stretch Marks: Not that I can see...?
Best moments: Hearing Ellie's heartbeat at the doctor is always great. And Caidyn telling me when we got home VERY early Monday morning (1am) that she's "ready for Ellie to come out of my belly now" <3 and the surprise baby shower Caidyn's school threw for us! 
Movement: Yes!!!! I love it! 
Food Cravings: Same as always - sweets and veggies. 
Anything making you sick or queasy? Nausea is starting back up again... sometimes related to when my back hurts very badly and I've been overdoing it and sometimes I'm not sure why. 
Labor signs: The evening this picture was taken I actually had about 2 1/2 hours of strong contractions in a row. Not quite painful, but more uncomfortable than normal. We left Angela's wedding early because of them and started driving home. Luckily they stopped 1/2 way across the Alley or we would have gone to the hospital instead of home! 
Belly Button: Let's just not talk about this weird bump formerly known as a belly button. 
Wedding Rings: On and still fitting! Every so often I'll swell up a bit but I've been lucky to go back down and still able to wear them! 
Happy or Moody: Happy until Tuesday evenings/Wednesday mornings. I get my progesterone shots every Wednesday and I can really feel the hormone let down when the week has gone by. I've always been really sensitive to messing with my hormones so I'm not surprised, I'm just ready for it to be done. 
Monthly Wisdom: I can't believe another baby will be here so soon. I have been mentally trying to prepare myself to actually be in school on the last day, and for quite a bit of June to have gone by before Eleanor arrives. I am still hoping for another early delivery, but I don't want to be a grump all of June because I haven't delivered yet. 

Weeks 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 - AKA the month pnemonia consumed our lives

21 Weeks:

22 Weeks:

23 Weeks: 

24 Weeks: 

25 Weeks:

Wow. I can't believe it has been that long since I have posted. I was going to post date this pregnancy post, but in the spirit of both full disclosure and accurately documenting our life right now I'm going to leave it. 

Caidyn has been really sick lately. On and off, but sick none-the-less. It has been awful, but if she was going to go through a period of sickness with contagious and serious sicknesses, I'm glad it was before Eleanor gets here. 

She had a cough and runny nose at the beginning of February. No big deal. Its winter, Its cold season. She had no fever. Or she had a slight fever. If she had a fever or just seemed rough we kept her home from school, usually Brian worked from home (thank goodness he has that sort of schedule), and she would be back to normal by noon making us question why we even arranged for her not to be in school. 

Fast forward a week. Tiny Nathan is born! We are so excited and have a three day weekend and drive up to visit him. Our first long drive while potty training so we don't offer Caidyn much water or drink that day so she stays dry (we also put her in a Pull Up, and stop to pee twice since she asks and we don't want her to think it is ok to go in the car). Anyways, she starts coughing a bit, of course as we are visiting a 6 day old baby! We chalk it up to her being thirsty - get her a drink and she DOWNS it. Like a full tervis cup gone in about 2 minutes. We think everything is alright and make plans to see Nate, Bridget, and the baby the next morning. 

And then we go to our hotel and have the LONGEST night ever. She falls asleep fine, but wakes up from about 2-4:30 coughing. We almost go to the store to buy Vicks and some homeopathic meds. She falls back asleep, wakes up the next morning and coughs for the first time about an hour after she wakes up. At this point we are on this phone with Nate and Bridget letting them know about our rough night. They have us come over anyways because if Caidyn was sick then she already exposed them all yesterday (valid point). 

We go over there and SHE COUGHS SO HARD SHE THROWS UP! It was mid tickle-fight and she was sort of upside down and swallowed her spit to inspire the coughing but still. We were mortified. She had never thrown up ever in her whole life. She actually tried to get the fight to continue about 55 seconds after she had thrown up (and she was clean... I on the other hand was still covered...). We try to leave in as quickly as a hurry after that, not even kissing the baby (even though Nate and Bridget didn't seem to phased) and we were worried our parent intuition was maybe off a bit. 

She naps the whole ride home, is fine all afternoon, sleeps through the night, wakes up the next morning fine, not a cough or sniffle and goes to school. 

She gets home grumpy, tired, and HOT. She has a fever. 

We keep her home the next day. She stays with my sisters. 

She gets no better. Brian stays with her Thursday and takes her to the doctor. 

I get a call right before lunch - Caidyn has pnemonia. What!?!?!?!?!?! I instantly start googling the heck of out it, make arrangements to be home with her the next day, and call my doctor to let them know just in case. Brian fills her antibiotic prescription, we call Nate and Bridget and feel AWFUL basically telling them we were just there and now our toddler has pnemonia... sorry about your newborn! Ugh. It was awful. 

She has her antibiotics, we stay home all weekend and do nothing. And by Sunday she is back to normal, stir crazy, and we are worn out. 

We go through a great week at school. A great weekend where we jam pack a ton of stuff in because we did nothing the weekend before. 

And then it is like de ja vu. Monday - a little something but gets better. Tuesday we pick her up from school and fever again. Goop in her eyeballs. Maybe it is allergies? The pollen count has been ASTRONOMICAL this year. But we keep her home Wednesday. She doesn't get better. 

We take her back to the doctor on Thursday - Oh. Her pnemonia is back. Stronger. The antibiotics weren't strong enough so this time we need stronger ones, for longer. 

I take time off work, Mommy takes time off work, and Brian takes time off work. We get the week covered, she is all better that next weekend. She goes to school all the next week. Finishes her antibiotics. We celebrate Brian's 30th birthday at Disney. Its spring break for me so we relax when we get home. 

Thursday is St Patrick's day and we have an AWESOME morning. We go to the parade, the beach, we come home take a bath and put her down for a nap. 

She wakes up about 2 hours late, hands me the Vicks and thermometer and says "I feel sick". I sort of jokingly thinking she wants to play doctor take her temp. 

102.3. 

SERIOUSLY?!?!?!? And she coughed. Like all at once just like that. And this isn't a throat clearing cough. It is a mucousy cough. Ugh. 

I call the doctor right then and just leave a message. Basically, WHAT THE HECK?!?! 

We monitor her overnight. No fever. She wakes up, and hour later in the 101's. An hour after that in the 102's. I start to be nervous but the doctor said if it is low grade (102 or lower) to just monitor her through the weekend. She starts crying and rubbing her leg and arm and says she hurts, I take it again - 104.5. I call the doctor. They see us about an hour and a half later (because they are amazing). And she gets tested for a treated for the flu. 

She finishes her flu meds on Wednesday morning (5 days of dosing, but she started in the evening so we overlap one day). 

Lets please hope this is the end of this! I have 2 sick days left for the year and already have to come home from a wedding ending at 11pm 2 hours away that night so I don't miss work anymore. I was trying to roll 5 days over to next year to cover another week of maternity leave... which is not happening anymore. 

Anything for our baby girl, but please please please stay healthy! 

To continue the longest post ever - here are the monthly update questions!

How far along: 6 months!
Total weight gain: As of my glucose test and work blood draw on Friday I am up 18lbs
Maternity Clothes: A solid mix. I'm trying to up my number of bottoms (shorts specifically) by getting a few with elastic waistbands. Some tops and dresses that are regular still fit. Some have become a LITTLE short
Stretch Marks: I'm not sure... I'm eyeing a few spots. Whatever happens happens I guess!
Best moments: I just love to hear and see Caidyn notice or talk about Ellie. I walked out of my room in my swimsuit yesterday and she just stopped what she was doing to notice the belly and say hi to Ellie and give her a kiss. Those moments are so worth it!
Movement: So much! I love it all! The best was Saturday morning - our very tired family slept in. I was woken up by some kicking - and it was already 8:45am! Definitely a pleasant time to be woken up, especially by our littlest member.
Food Cravings: Right now I want chocolate. And vegetables. Not together. But its like my body craves unhealthy stuff, but then wants healthy stuff to balance. 80/20 is every meal, right? ;)
Anything making you sick or queasy? If I get too hungry and get nauseous. And then don't want to eat and feel worse... got to keep up on my snacks!
Labor signs: I have Braxton Hick's contractions regularly. Enough so I asked the doctor about them last time I went. Just hoping it means another earlier baby! 37 weeks falls on our 10 year dating anniversary!
Belly Button: Has betrayed me. Its a mix of in and out and is just weird looking right now. Haha.
Wedding Rings: On and still fitting! Which is wonderful! I"m trying to remember when I had to take them off and only wear my anniversary band last time. They both fit right now, but I'm preparing to have to go down to one soon (especially as the weather warms up).
Happy or Moody: I would say happy but EXHAUSTED! I've been VERY achy these past couple weeks. And uncomfortable. But I feel generally happy!
Monthly Wisdom: I am realizing I need to slow down on my physical actvitity. Like maybe not doing the track students workouts with them... walking more instead of running... not picking up Caidyn as often (she's 35lbs!). I'm trying to mentally become ok with that. I've been so lucky to be so active this pregnancy that it makes me sad to think I'll need to cut back. I need to focus on being thankful for what I've been able to do so I don't do any long term damage to any muscles or ligaments pushing it too hard. 

Welcome Tiny Nathan!

Our Nephew, Nathan Thomas Wyss, arrived on February 8, 2016! Uncle Nakey Face (Brian) drove to Tampa to meet him the very day he was born. Caidyn and I had to wait for baby snuggles until Valentine's weekend. He was 7lb 3oz and born at 11:52am after a VERY fast labor. We are thrilled for  Uncle Beard and Auntie Bridget and know they are already amazing parents! 

Weeks 17, 18, 19, and 20! Half done!!!!

Week 17:

Feeling AMAZING! I found myself saying to myself that if I didn't know already this was a girl I would swear it was a boy just by how much energy I have! A few bouts of heartburn but nothing a tums tablet couldn't handle. I finally figured out hydration and maybe Ellie moved up a hair so I can sometimes sleep through the night without having to get up to pee - and it just has me feeling like a whole new person! Up 4 pounds since my last doctors appointment which I feel like is a lot in two weeks but its what Ellie needs so I'll take it! 

Week 18;

Oh my goodness I'm not sure if any two weeks in pregnancy can feel any different. I want to simultaneously laugh and be sick at last week's update. It started Monday morning with my workout that I just was SO exhausted through. I had been hesitating signing up for the half marathon in February because I just wasn't sure if it was the best idea or if I could do it - and today made me finally voice my concerns to Brian. He really wanted to do it still so I called the morning a fluke and just kept going. Later that day I had my third injection and it was THE WORST by far. I ruined a pair of underwear since I bled from my shot and it dripped onto them after bleeding out from the bandaid that was put on it! I was in such pain for the rest of the night and the next day. Wednesday morning I stopped 15 minutes into a plyo workout, again just so exhausted. I'm not even sure I worked out Thursday. Friday I woke up excited to go for a run in the afternoon and by the end of the day my goal was just "don't go home and sit on the coach" so I took Caidyn for a surprise park trip which ended up being a lot of fun and kept me up! It was just an exhausting week - even Brian noticed I was much more tired than normal. However, as I went to bed last night (Sunday, 1.31) my throat was sore and I had a runny nose, and typing this now Monday during lunch (2.1) it is still sore - so I'm going to hold out hope that my body was trying to fight the cold and needed all the rest and my energy will be back in no time as soon as I kick this! Right?!?! #fingerscrossed

Week 19:

So the week started on a very ugh note as I had an awful sore throat and runny nose. But early bedtime and the power of positive thinking had me feeling MUCH better by Tuesday - in fact I was able to go for a run! 

Wednesday morning we had a checkup for tiny Ellie and Caidyn was able to join us! It was the big ultrasound so we knew we would get a lot of Ellie viewing time in which she enjoyed a little bit. Hearing the heartbeat and looking at the easily visible parts (arms and fingers, profile) were Caidyn's favorites, but when the look at the brain size and for kidney formations and such she got a little squirmy. We also had 2 accidents at the doctors office (both as we were approaching or already in the bathroom!) but she told us right away and was sad about it so showing growth in the potty training area! As far as Ellie everything looked great! Brian learned how to give me the shots, they checked my cervix length (and will do that again at my next appointment) and it all came back well. Very little risk of preterm labor! We did have some warnings about mosquitos and the Zika virus that is going around South America right now. It has appeared locally but only in people who were tourists in that part of the world, so something to be on the lookout for but not overly concerned about. I also FINALLY gained weight! I was up 8lbs, which felt like a lot for one month but the doctor was very happy to see it and said no worries. I'm only up 10lbs for the whole pregnancy which is right on track so I have to remember that when I feel bad about gaining so much in one quick month!

Week 20:

What a week! Daddy was out of town from Sunday to Wednesday night but we hung in there! It worked out that he was in Orlando, though, because on Monday we welcomed a new nephew and cousin - Nathan Thomas Wyss! Nate and Bridget's son was born and we couldn't be happier for them! Brian was able to drive over after his last meeting Monday to be with the family as they sang happy birthday to tiny Nathan with a cupcake and zero candle! 

Caidyn and I facetimed in so we could enjoy the fun, too! We can't wait for our turn to get to meet and hold and play with this little guy! And now I'm the only pregnant Wyss left! 

It is extra special that this happened during week 20 - last time I was 20 weeks pregnant (with Caidyn) Nate and Bridget got engaged! What a full circle we have come in! 

Tuesday I battled some sciatica pain, but came home and stretched a TON to help relieve it. I'm mostly left with soreness today and a thankful heart for what could have been (and hopefully still isn't) the start of a very long and painful second half of this pregnancy. 

I still can't wrap my mind around the fact that we are already more than half done with this pregnancy. It seems so surreal and we are so excited about our future as a family of four! Caidyn just loves "her baby" and its so adorable. She will literally sometimes be doing something else, sneak a peak up and see the belly, and just stops and comes over saying, "Hi Baby Ellie" and hugs and kisses the belly. I have had many a dirty outfit since she is often mid snack or meal at the time and that dirty face just can't help but give kisses. It is so worth it though and I am so thankful she is so excited for this new role she is going to step in to. 

We can't wait to meet you, Eleanor Rose! 

Weekend Fun and Caidyn Says

We've been trying to crunch a bunch of the activities it will be a while before we can do again in with Caidyn lately. Friday afternoon was another one of those! We went to a paint your own pottery place and had a blast! The owner and her family where there and it was just a great experience. They were so personable, reasonably priced, and the three of us had a great time!

They even gave us this juice after they overheard Caidyn asking for a drink! In the same shopping center we went to a delicious pizza place. We sat at the kitchen-bar since that seating was available and we were hungry! Caidyn had so much fun sitting on the stool and was super careful. Our pizza was SO thick but so delicious!

Saturday we went and made some purchases for Ellie's room which I will recap soon! But we had a big afternoon planned at Caidyn's school for their fundraiser event. It is a neat fundraiser - they have games and activities for kids, silent auction and raffles for adults, and things like a cake-walk that cater to all ages! Our little bouncer LOVED the bounce house slide combo but also had a blast hopping around in her potato sack race!

That evening I went out and celebrated a great friend's birthday! We had a special gift waiting for her though...

Niamh and I have been friends since elementary school.She has such a giving heart and has been SO sweet and amazing with Caidyn. On Friday night we had painted her a ring holder dish and on the bottom wrote, "Will you be my godmom? Love, Eleanor". As you can tell, she said yes!!

Our weekend ended with our silly little girl just being her usual goofy self! She used my brown towel as she got out of the shower and exclaimed, "This shower is brown and fuzzy like a bear. Rawr!"

This morning she was in the grass kind of slumped over crying (like she does when she is temper tantruming...) and I just called her name out. She said, "Mommy I'm sad. Come be in the grass with me." Um... ok. "Why are you sad?". She gets up, rubs and kisses my belly and says, "Because Ellie can't come to school with me." And then we were both crying in the grass!

Then on our way to school as we were stuck in traffic, "Mommy, green light go!"... "I can't go because there are cars in front of me."... "Don't they know how to drive?" 

I almost died laughing. She drives too much with her father ;)

I owe it all to the DT

The DT is Daniel Tiger. And I owe it all to him.

Specifically, his parents.

Caidyn LOVES this show. She asks all the time if she can watch Daniel Tiger.

This is by far my favorite show she watches. Her favorite characters change weekly, and they are always so random. A few weeks ago it was Daniel Tiger's Daddy. Last week it was Baker Aker. Right now I would say it is a tie between Caterina and Baby Margaret.

The reason this show is my favorite is simple. Listening to Daniel Tiger makes me a better parent.

I know that sounds ridiculous but hear me out.

I can't figure out what Daniel Tiger's parents do for a living that they are always home with their children. But it doesn't matter. What does matter is how excellent their reactions are to the struggles of parenthood. Frustrated kid? Perfect response. Sad kid? Perfect response.

They are literally the most patient and understanding parents ever. But, they don't get walked all over. They don't get walked all over, Daniel learns a lesson, and everyone ends up happy.

About 2 months ago I started duplicating what I was hearing. When Caidyn would get frustrated I would respond the ways Daniel's parents respond. If she was sad or angry or needed to say sorry I would respond the way they responded - down to the little songs they incorporate which was definitely awkward. But then magic happened. IT WORKED! She responded the way Daniel did - with understanding, growth, and like an actual good child who listens to their parents. Just like Daniel, she doesn't learn it forever the first time (or 4th, or 2938th) but the process gets a little quicker each time.

Daniel Tiger has made me a better parent. And I owe my new found patience and skills to the DT.

**Side note, I realize everyone has differing opinions on screen time for children. We kind of let Caidyn self regulate since she rarely wants to watch anything longer than 10-15 minutes at a time (and by rarely I mean if she is feeling well, she's done after 15 minutes 98% of the time). We also always try and distract her the first two times she asks, but if our attempts at conversation or distracting her with a toy or book don't deter her, we let her watch. She interacts with the show and doesn't just passively watch and will answer questions about what is going on (or sometimes just narrate it to herself) so we know she is comprehending what is happening. Not everyone's style, but it is ours. Judge away, but remember I have parent love, too ;)**

**Another side note, she mostly watches on Amazon Instant Video. We love prime so much and this is just one of the 1092912 reasons why. We can download some episodes to our phones or her kindle so we aren't pulling data all the time and she knows how to get in.**